Saturday, June 6, 2015

'Risks and dangers incidental to the game of baseball'

A woman who was hit in the head by a shattered bat
Friday night at Fenway Park is taken through the field to
a Boston hospital with what police called 'life-threatening
injuries."

It's part of the pre-game routine at Twins games: the public address announcer warning fans to be aware of bats and balls flying into the stands and disclaiming any responsibility for "risks and dangers incidental to the game of baseball."

Most of us don't pay much attention to it. And in most seats, there's no need to. But Friday night, in cramped Fenway Park, a woman sitting near a dugout was hit by part of a shattered bat. Reporters tweeted that she was bleeding profusely and shrieking; police described the injuries as "life-threatening."

I've never been big on the notion of extending the backstop netting down the foul lines. But I think it's coming. This is not the first fan injury, but it might be one that creates some changes in the "fan experience."